EnBW has awarded North Star a contract for a commissioning service operation vessel (CSOV) to be deployed at the 960 MW He Dreiht offshore wind farm in Germany.
The award, which is the first for a North Star CSOV, for the newbuild Grampian Kestrel will precede the decade-long minimum charter contract that the company signed in February to provide a service operations vessel (SOV) for the German energy utility firm’s He Dreiht offshore wind farm in the German North Sea.
Tailored for the commissioning phase, the CSOV will offer essential accommodation and logistics to support the construction and commissioning works in 2025. Following this period, it will lead EnBW’s operations and maintenance activities until the newbuild SOV is delivered in the third quarter of 2026.
“The CSOV, part of North Star’s growing fleet as we aim to add 40 SOVs by 2040, will be equipped with market leading accessibility to enable commissioning and maintenance operations, and feature the latest hull design optimised for low fuel consumption and resistance, as well as high operability and comfort”, said Matthew Gordon , CEO of North Star.
The Grampian Kestrel is the first of two CSOVs under construction for North Star. The VARD 4 22 design has been developed especially for North Star, with new methanol-ready hybrid-propulsion solutions and an increased number of single cabins.
North Star, which has a base in Hamburg as well as UK operations in Aberdeen, Lowestoft, and Newcastle, has a 1,400-strong workforce and has added a total of eight SOVs and CSOVs to its fleet since entering the offshore wind market in March 2021.